NOT BUYING EXPERIENCE: TAG Heuer Aquaracer Quartz Two Tone

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You remember my 'Buying Experience' post about my blue dial Kirium chronograph, and more precisely the part where I said buying from eBay is a risk and you sometimes get more than you thought and sometimes less, well.... that doesn't just apply to eBay!

As you may recall, the other day I posted about the WN1153 2000 Exclusive two-tone 37mm I tried on at H&T Pawnbrokers in Northampton. I really liked the design of the watch, but at 37mm I just knew it was going to be a purchase I would regret, so when I came across the WAF1120 on the Fine Time Watches website for a bargain £529 I thought I'd found myself the answer.

The watch was advertised as being 41mm, suitable for a 8.1/2" wrist and there was a 10% discount offer going, so having used Fine Time before (and being quite impressed) I made a snap decision to buy. I know, I know... but recently I've lost several watches (and a car) by hesitating too much so I thought - go for it, you know?

I mean that looks pretty cool right? That's what I thought... of course, the first sign of trouble came the evening after I'd placed my order. I was Googling WAF1120 for pics and of course I came across where Watchfinder had one that was £875. Woo, I thought - got mine at a great price! But then I noticed the size on the Watchfinder site was listed as 38mm.

So I Googled some more, and found several other sites where it was listed variously as 38mm, 38.4mm and 39mm. Hmm... here comes that sinking feeling again!

So I went back to the Fine Time Watches site and of course the listing had been taken down because the watch was no longer available. I wasn't doubting that the size was listed as 41mm, but I just wanted to screenshot it for my own peace of mind. However, there is a section on the site where they show previous sales, and they have sold several WAF1120s (usually in the £700s actually, probably due to the condition - in hindsight) and each and every time they have described the watch as being 41mm.

So the watch arrived and my first impression was, it was kinda bland and a lot more scratched than the pictures had led me to believe. Also the box it came in was deteriorating much like the box my Chronotimer came in and everywhere I put it down there was a trail of black bits left behind. That in itself isn't an issue really, I'm buying the watch not the box - but of course it's nice to have the box in good condition, especially if you think you might be going to sell it again.

But the watch was definitely not as pristine as the pictures (grey towel pics) suggested, all the pics below are taken by me and give a much more realistic representation of how the watch actually looked.

On the wrist, I didn't have a problem with the size. It looks like it could be a 41mm to be honest, but it's so dull and lifeless. I think it's just the lack of contrast, I think maybe the gold on the WN1153 is slightly darker, so it looks like it contrasts more with the silver elements... this one just has zero pop. Which is bizarre when it's a gold watch! 

One thing I will say is that this watch is quite hard to photograph, the light reflects off it so much that a head on shot is not happening! Not with my camera.

The lume was good on the markers (which are framed with gold surrounds), there's no lume at the twelve and three positions but there is a lume pip on the bezel. 

It didn't matter how many times I looked at the watch I could not tell if the gold had come off the raised parts of the bezel. See in this photo it really looks like it has, but I just couldn't tell. It looks like the gold there is very thin and you can see the silver through, probably because it's been polished at some point - but it's really hard to say for sure.

The bracelet was big on me and I would have needed two or maybe even three links taking out, but the bigger issue was the clasp. Oh yeah, the clasp. I don't know how much this watch was originally, but given that it's gold it wasn't going to be cheap - TAG have no business putting a crappy pressed steel clasp on it, that's the first thing to say... but beyond that, the clasp on this one is not good at all. 

Here's a first for me, I took a little video showing you how well this clasp is working... not very good is it? Definitely needs some attention I think...!

So, with the watch already underwhelming me massively, and then the clasp problem... it didn't take me much to decide to send it back. The size not being what it was stated was convenient, but it wasn't really about that. I was just very, very disappointed in the condition and the watch in general - it just really didn't live up to the pictures at all and I must say because my previous experience with Fine Time was so good, I perhaps took it for granted that they were a seller I could trust without being diligent. I'm not saying they misrepresented the watch as far as the pictures go, they probably have a better camera than I do and know how to take 'better' pictures than me, But, it was definitely a disappointment when I opened the box, especially as last time the watch I received looked better than the pictures suggested!

To be fair to Fine Time Watches, I posted the watch back and they processed my refund immediately so I can't complain about that at all. In fact, I was slightly surprised because I posted the watch Royal Mail Special Delivery on Friday and it shouldn't have got there until Monday but they obviously received it on Saturday and did my refund straight away.

So while this was a disappointment I may have stumbled across an alternative. Apparently there is a chronograph version of the WN1153 2000 Exclusive, and that one has a 39mm diameter, so maybe, if I can find one at a reasonable price, that will be the way to go. But as for this one, well, it's a shame, I really wanted to like it, but it just didn't cut it for me.

One thing though, it has made me rethink my sizes. Now that I have another Kirium, I'm getting used to wearing slightly smaller watches again, and over the weekend I put a bid on a 38mm Aquaracer. If I win it and it fills my wrist like this one then I will be plenty happy.

Despite this experience, I definitely wouldn't rule out buying from Fine Time Watches again, they have a couple of very nice CAY1110s in stock, and ever since I tried that watch on I've been wanting one of those, but again it's the same problem in that it looks a lot like other pieces in my collection - most notably the Aquagraph. So for now, I think I'll pursue other avenues and see if I can't dig up a CN1151 somewhere.

CN1151

As usual, I can find pieces that have been sold, but none 'for sale'... and I do rather wonder what over-inflated price it might be when I do find one? I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it...

In the meantime, the WAF1120 is back for sale, at £529 and still listed as a 41mm...  (sigh).

http://www.finetimewatches.com/product-page/tag-heuer-aquaracer-tt-gents-watch-gold-steel-waf1120

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ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer Grand Carrera Chronograph

CAV511E.BA0902

TAG Heuer Boutique / York, 21st July 2018

At first glance you might be forgiven for thinking 'why is he writing about that Grand Carrera again', but look a little closer and you will see that the dial on this particular one is brown not black. Obviously, everything else about the watch is the same, but the brown dial really does look quite different in person and gives this CAV511E a distinctly luxurious appearance.

In all honesty, I never thought I would like a brown dial watch... the thought of it ranks right up there with brown straps for me, but in actual fact this one is rather gorgeous. Maybe it's because the brown dial is a little warmer and a little less harsh than the solid black version, but it just screams 'luxury' and looks worth every bit of the asking price (I think it was about £3400 IIRC).

It looks and feels fantastic on the wrist, and yet again made me question whether buying the GMT Calibre 8 was wise, when I know that deep down this is the one I really wanted. I'm still kicking myself that I didn't buy the pre-owned black dial CAV511A that was on offer for £2400 in my local jeweller. That was a mistake, for sure... but then I did manage to offload my CAU2012 for a good trade in price with Watchfinder, so I can't complain too much.

A quick Google throws up a pre-owned brown dial CAV511E available from Watchfinder for £2450, but the glass looks in a right state and it's nine years old, which again makes a NOS piece with a two year warranty look attractive if you can stretch to it.

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As you would probably expect, this brown dial watch was also available on a brown leather strap, although I haven't seen one myself and personally I don't think it improves the overall appeal one bit for me. But it is available, if you like that sort of thing... :)

Overall then, count me as a convert. I really would never have dreamed of liking a brown dial watch, but this one absolutely blew me away. It is absolutely stunning in person, and I think it's actually nicer than the black dial, which again I really didn't think I'd ever find myself saying. Without a doubt if I had unlimited funds this one would be sitting in my cabinet at home already, but it's still a lot of money to invest in one watch, and I'm still holding out some hope of finding the rare blue dial Japan only version. It has to come up sooner or later, doesn't it?

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ON THE WRIST: 2000 Exclusive Quartz Two Tone Watch

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H&T Pawnbrokers / Northampton, 13th August 2018

Just lately I've woken up to the joys of perusing the local pawnbrokers' windows, I've already seen an Alter Ego and a very nice Formula 1 Calibre 16 and the latest thing to catch my eye was this two tone 2000 Exclusive. Since my last visit to Bicester Village I've become rather more open to the idea of having something gold in my watch cabinet and at £595 this looked like it could fit the bill nicely.

The only problem, of course, was size. At 37mm this is definitely on the smaller side and I think while you don't want a gold watch to be too big and blingy, at the same time you don't want it to be very undersized either since it could look a tad effeminate. So I was really in two minds about it when I tried it on and it didn't help that I was wearing a chunky 43mm Aquaracer at the time.

In all honesty when I saw it in the window, it didn't look overly small but I presumed that the bracelet wouldn't fit me and that would be that. But actually the bracelet was a touch too big and would definitely have needed a link or two taking out to fit my 7.3/4" wrist. Also the marks that seemed to be apparent weren't actually marks at all and most of them proved to be fingerprints on the gold plate and were easily wiped away with a cloth.

The compression clasp was in excellent order and very crisp indeed, which gave me the overall impression that the watch really hadn't seen that much use, despite it being probably at least 15 years old. I must say I really liked the gold 12, 6, 9 numerals and the way the bezel was dissected allowing for a properly two-tone design.

The next day I kept thinking about the watch, but I had grave doubts about the 37mm size. So I decided that what I would do was I would wear my 6000 Series, which is 38mm I think, but very thin and see how it compared with that. However, as it turned out my work day was rather busy and I never got the time to walk into town to try it on again.

Also a friend pointed out a two-tone Link on Fine Time Watches the other day, and I decided to check that out again, although I was sure that too was 38mm. As it happened that watch had been sold, but I did happen upon another bargain that is currently en route to me and should arrive tomorrow morning! I haven't been back into town as yet, so it could be that this one is still for sale if you fancy it? I do like it a lot, and if it had been say 40mm I might well have chosen this one even though the watch I've actually gone for is £70 cheaper. But the one I've ordered is 41mm, and that makes a big difference I think, I just feel like if I'd bought this one I'd regret it based solely on it's size, so even though I think the design might be slightly better, I'm sure I've made the right choice.

VIDEO: Does TAG Heuer Suck? by The Time Teller / Federico

The Time Teller, Jory Goodman makes a fool of himself live on the interwebz (with Federico as the voice of reason... )

ON THE WRIST: Aquaracer Calibre 5 Two Tone Watch

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TAG Heuer Boutique / Bicester Village, 27th July 2018

Ever since Liam (at Bicester) introduced me to the Grand Carrera GMT with the diamond bezel, I've found myself becoming less snooty about diamonds, gold and two-tone watches... indeed I've rather taken to the Aquaracer 500M Calibre 5 with the 18K solid gold bezel of late, although I'm still a little confused about when I would wear a dive watch with a gold bezel.

That aside, I'm definitely more open to the possibility of something gold being added to my collection, although the main problem there is that by their very nature, gold watches tend to be expensive. Two tone is probably the route I'll take because full gold watches are a bit too much visually and to be honest there aren't that many full gold TAGs to choose from anyway.

This watch caught my eye in part due to it's very reasonable price tag, £1855 in the outlet, so I'm guessing a list price around the £2500 mark - which for an Aquaracer Calibre 5 with gold on is about right. I must admit I didn't get the same feeling I got from the Calibre 5 500M Aquaracer with the gold bezel, I'm not sure why... these things are intangible I guess. Maybe it's the gold dial which doesn't feel quite right to me? It's a little wishy-washy, especially when you've got that strong black bezel as a frame. I think a gold bezel works better somehow... I think it might have been okay if the markers were black, but as it is, the dial's just a sea of gold! Not that anyone's going to take it diving, but how this can qualify as a diver is anyone's guess really, I mean legibility is definitely not it's strongest asset.

But still, even with that said, it's still a nice looking watch, and that ceramic bezel should stay looking nice way after your standard aluminium inserts has faded and scratched - although bear in mind it will forever be covered in fingerprints, that's just the way it is...

So then, this is definitely not the gold watch for me, but the more I think about it the more I definitely want to add at least one gold piece to my collection. It's an instant point of difference, but my main issue is cost, and more to the point cost vs usage... because I'm honestly not sure how often I will wear a gold watch. At one point I did consider one of those 'Eduard Heuer Golden Hours' watches, until I saw the prices they go for!

Realistically, I'm thinking sub £1000 and more than likely quartz, so I will just have to see what comes along...

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ON THE WRIST: Formula 1 Calibre S Chronograph

CAH7010.BT0717

TAG Heuer Boutique / Bicester Village, 27th July 2018

I've been kind of attracted to this one for a while, not least because it combines the best bits of my old WAH1110 and the Calibre S movement, which I really like. One of the best things about this model is that it side-steps my main problem with the WAH1110, namely it's 41mm diameter. This watch is like that one on steroids, coming in at a much beefier 44mm and all the better for it.

I thought trying this one on might make me miss my old WAH1110, but it hasn't. If anything it reminds me more of my CAU2012, which I'm pretty sure has the same case and indeed this utilises the same 22mm (BT0717) strap which I bought for my Calibre 16 F1. And speaking of that watch, my main niggle with this one is that same unfortunate combination of pushers and crown guards which project out of the side of the watch and make it look a bit odd.

But then it definitely needs those crown guards because the crown on this watch sticks out a lot. In fact it really struck me that it looked like a screw down crown that wasn't screwed down - such is the gap between the case and the crown. I don't know why that is, I know the Calibre S requires the crown to be pushed in to activate the chrono function, but my yellow Aquaracer has no gap between the crown and case visible at all.

I really love the monochrome colour scheme, that really works well although the hands on the Calibre S are typically a bit vague (mine is just the same), they often don't return exactly to the 12, but catch up once you activate the chronograph. I must admit that is the one thing that bugs me about the Calibre S, despite being otherwise brilliant. I do really like the skeletonised hands and the way they've made the 1/100 dial larger than the 1/10 although there's not really a functional reason for doing that, it just looks funky!

I think the list for this was around the £1800 mark as it's on offer at the Bicester outlet for £1205, which is the usual 30% saving. I wondered how much they were available for pre-owned, but they don't seem to be that common and the prices weren't much better to be honest, so NOS with a two year warranty seems like a good deal to me.

So crown and crown guards aside, I really rather like this one, although I think it would have to be quite a bit cheaper to tempt me back into the Formula 1 pool.

VIDEO: Carrera Re-Edition by Theo and Harris

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ON THE WRIST: Carrera Calibre 16 White Dial Chronograph

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TAG Heuer Boutique / Bicester Village, 27th July 2018

I've always really liked the Carreras with the 'minute' numerals, but when they are placed on a black dial they do have a tendency to disappear as they reflect the black in their polished surfaces. One way to resolve the problem is to have a white dial and that's exactly what we have here... and it's a bit of a stunner to say the least.

There's nothing overly remarkable about the watch in general, it's a 43mm case, with a Calibre 16 movement as you'd expect and have seen in countless other Carreras. But that combination of white dial and minute markers really works well and gives this one a modern feeling that eludes a lot of Carreras. Now I'm sure this won't be everyone's cup of tea because a lot of Carrera fans would rather they didn't have a modern feeling at all, but there's many, many Carreras out there for those people, and it's nice that this one is a little different...

It's almost odd to see a white dial Carrera, and how different it makes the watch look. We see so many black dial versions (with the obligatory splashes of red) that when something that deviates from the norm comes along it can have quite a lot of impact. This watch certainly isn't for the shy and retiring owner, sometimes white dial watches can look a little bit boring but this one certainly doesn't and the face has a metallic silvery shimmer similar to a guitar I once owned. 

On the wrist it feels substantial, but not oversized and features some very nice polished surfaces including the bezel, which looks great even if it is rendered all but unreadable by the constant reflections and fingermarks. But hey, who's actually using their tachymetre scale anyway?

Of course the dial brings to mind that other white faced Carrera, the McLaren 1974 Limited Edition. In fact I went as far as mocking up the CV2A11 with the tyre tread rubber strap from the CAR2A12, but once you put them side by side you realise they do look quite different. Aside from the different movements (the McLaren has the Calibre 1887) the CV2A11 is a day-date model rather than just a date and doesn't play so well with the rubber strap due to the lack of black on the face and bezel.

I honestly thought it would look better than that, and a lot closer to the McLaren, but it really doesn't... so scratch that, I'd keep it on the BA0796 bracelet provided, which is very stylish and complements the watch nicely.

List price for this one was a hefty £3850, which makes the McLaren look a better deal to be honest... but in the outlet this one has the customary 30% discount which takes it way down to £2695, which suddenly starts to look a lot more attractive (I don't imagine you're going to find a NOS McLaren at a 30% discount anywhere!). The only thing I would say is that with the three sub dials and the day date function, the TAG Heuer logo does look a little shoehorned in at the 2 position compared to the better balanced dial on the McLaren version... but that in itself isn't a deal breaker for me.

An ideal Carrera then for someone who wants something a little different, but who doesn't want to break the bank. It's certainly worth a look if you like a white dial, although as you can see from the picture above it is a sort of off-white in reality. Personally, I think I would save the cash and try and find a McLaren 40th Anniversary, but that's always been on my 'wish list' so I'm a bit biased!

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BUYING EXPERIENCE: TAG Heuer Kirium Chronograph Quartz Blue Dial

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Buying from eBay can be risky, sometimes you get better than you hoped for and sometimes you don't. I must admit when I initially opened the (immaculate) drum case for this lovely blue dial Kirium chrono I was a little disappointed. The description spoke of 'light marks', but this was pretty scratched up - by my standards at least. And then I realised the hand with the 'arrow' on the point was stuck at the 4 position and wouldn't reset to 12 and I got that sinking feeling...

Which was unexpected because the seller seemed like a decent chap and responded quickly to my emails - even the ones about the hand being stuck, and he sent me a helpful youtube video showing me how to put it right. So I think, he believed he was 'honest' even if I felt slightly cheated - but wear is a difficult thing to quantify and it's not as if the pictures were unclear - it's just that scratches can seem worse or better in pictures than they really are, especially on polished surfaces.

I consulted the manual and because it spoke of 'split times' for some reason I thought the watch was a rattrapante, so that confused me even more... it isn't, it's a regular chrono with a second hand and minute hand (with the arrow) just like my Aquagraph. Eventually, I realised that if you pull the crown out to the second position you can reset the chrono minute hand to 12 using the 'B' pusher. You have no idea how happy I was when I discovered this and then ran the chronograph for over an hour and everything worked perfectly!

But of course the watch was still scratched up and so I set about cleaning it up using some jewellers rouge, some Scotchbrite and a Dremmel. I must have spent a couple of hours carefully cleaning up the bracelet and while it still carries marks it is a vast improvement on how I found the watch on arrival. 

The picture above shows the state the watch was in on arrival, the centre links are supposed to be polished while the outer links should be brushed, but you really couldn't tell. To be fair the seller bought the watch in 2001 and wore it for seventeen years before he sold it to me (he even included the original receipt - the watch was £1325 new and he got a £200 discount) so when you think about it, the decline was gradual so it probably looked okay to him.

This was the watch after I spent a couple of hours on it. I could have kept going but it's okay for now. Maybe some day I will have it done properly, but we'll see. The other thing I did was to re-black the digits on the bezel as they were completely gone. It looks so much better with them back, unfortunately I didn't take a photograph 'before' I did it.

I do think the watch looks smaller than my F1 Kirium, even though they are the same size. I think it might be because the dial on this one is busy, whereas the F1 Kirium is almost totally blank (I never use the digital functions).

The seller supplied me the three original links that were taken out of the bracelet when he bought it, which is great because I need two of them put back in. Sadly this means I haven't been able to wear the watch yet, although I think once it gets sorted it will be taken off me and saved for my birthday in October as my wife is talking about giving me the money back that I paid for it. :)

While fiddling with the watch I also realised that there is no quick set date function, but the minute and hour hands are changed independently - and the hour hand moves the date, so in effect it is a lot quicker than having to go through the full cycle, and you can move the date backwards, which I definitely didn't expect.

The watch was on eBay for £425, and I made an initial offer of £370 (which I didn't really expect to bear fruit). The seller told me he'd already been offered £385 and we agreed a price of £400. Despite the unexpected scratches, I'm not unhappy and I certainly think I'd be happy to pay £400 for the watch in the condition that I have got it to now, and actually I quite enjoyed cleaning up the bracelet so I've got no real complaints.

So this then is TAG number ten, which means my cabinet is now half full. Next on the list is definitely some kind of S/EL, and after that I don't really know... but I'm sure it will be fun finding out.

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SPOTLIGHT ON: TAG Heuer S/EL Quartz Chronograph

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You may remember I recently missed out on a Watchfinder deal because they took two hours to come back to me about a query I had and in the meantime someone bought the watch from under my nose. Well, needless to say I haven't given up on my quest to find a nice S/EL and the other day I came across this nice white dial piece selling for about £150.

I put in a bid and was quickly winning the watch for about £170, but there was still a long way to go and I knew it was bound to go higher. So I sat back for a few days and then rashly made another bid and was back in the lead with a bid of £220 or so. But again, I knew I wasn't going to win it at that price so I left it alone until today and watched the last few seconds tick away before I placed my bid.

In the end I bid £316.90 with about 8 seconds to go and I was oh-so-briefly-winning, but ultimately the watch sold for £326.90..

Of course it is a little frustrating, but the first rule of eBay is that you should decide on a price and stick to it and I knew I didn't want to go much over £300, but bidding in whole numbers is bad practice and I thought maybe I could win it for £300 plus a bit more, so I gave it a shot.

Sure I could have bid more, but I noticed on one of the pictures that some of the lume on the second hand has fallen out, leaving a skeletonised hand that you can see the dial through. I'm not sure how noticeable that is on the wrist and I wonder if my fellow bidders have even noticed. But given that detail I didn't want to go too mad. It's a pity though because the bracelet looks a decent size and the watch comes with two spare links and bracelet length is always an issue for me with my 7.3/4" wrist.

I actually quite like the white dial, it reminds me of my first (fake) TAG watch that I had years ago... I wish I had some pictures of that as the dial was actually superb and I wasn't sure if it was fake or not for quite a long time, even when I took it to a local watch guy to change the battery he said I needed to take it to a TAG Heuer dealer as he couldn't do it... maybe he was trying to pass the buck, but I genuinely don't think he knew it was fake either. Of course this was nearly twenty years ago, I'm sure I would spot the watch was fake now immediately. Interestingly, the watch it most resembled was the Kirium, which is what I ended up buying when I got my first genuine TAG Heuer.

So, this one was a bust, but I'll keep looking. S/EL prices seem to be all over the place though, with some offered at seriously optimistic prices. There's a grey dial one of these on eBay that is being touted for £995, which is a bit OTT to be honest, but there's also a gorgeously restored one with a black dial for £775 which is very tempting....

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ON THE WRIST: TAG Heuer SLR Calibre S Chronograph / Lap Timer

CAG7010.FT015

TAG Heuer Boutique / Bicester Village, 27th July 2018

There I was thinking that I was one of the (comparatively) few people who knew how to operate a Calibre S watch... but it seems not all Calibre S watches are created equal! Ye gads, will the madness never end...? This one had me completely baffled, and seemingly only Store Manager Aneta could demonstrate the rather incredible functions of this Laptimer Calibre S (so thanks to her).

I'd love to be able to say I could explain it to you, but... honestly, while I got the general idea, the actual operation is still beyond my grasp. The watch seemed to be working perfectly until I pressed a button and then it seemed to baffle me all over again. In actual fact it was still working perfectly, but (as Aneta patiently explained) I had pressed the wrong button - silly me, because this one definitely doesn't work the same way as the Calibre S I have!

What this Calibre S can do that mine can't is not something I'd ever be likely to use, but it's quite remarkable all the same. As you may or may not have noticed, on the top portion of the dial there is a crescent shape with numbers 1-20 on it. This is where the SLR records the laps and indicates them with the hour hand (when in chrono mode). 

Amazingly, the watch remembers up to twenty different lap times and displays them on command, it can also show you the 'best' lap time on demand as well (I'm guessing the lap times can be up to one hour, since the minute hand forms part of the chrono function). Pretty impressive stuff, though obviously you will need to study the manual before use - and remember to reset the lap timer to zero if you are starting a new set of laps.

As I said, chances are it's not something I would ever use, but boy does this watch look cool. And not just the dial... that rubber strap is really something with the stylised gills, designed to mimic the vents in the Mercedes SLR wings. The rest of the strap is plain rubber, but it does culminate in a very nice deployment clasp with the SLR logo prominently featured. The clasp reminded me of the ones found on the Monaco 24s with the pointed shape and twin button release and looks and feels suitably luxurious.

Oddly, TAG have chosen to angle the right side of the case so that the pushers appear to be on the front of the watch rather than the side. I'm not really sure what the thinking was behind this, but one effect is to increase the diameter to a stonking 47mm. Strangely though it wears smaller, I certainly wouldn't say this feels as big as a 45mm Heuer 01.

The (slightly annoying) crown on the left hand side operates a turning inner rehaut, and provides the facility of a countdown timer. That's fine, but why does that crown have to stick out so damned far? It looks a bit silly and it's not the most comfortable thing in the world, although this one didn't feel as sharp as the last one I tried on.

But that really is my only quibble with this watch, well that and it's overly complicated functionality... but you can't really complain about that, can you? The TAG outlet at Bicester currently has this in stock for a very attractive £2345 (reduced from £3600) which looks like about 35% discount from where I'm standing. Worth a look if you are considering a pre-owned SLR for sure.

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SPOTLIGHT ON: Ladies TAG Heuer 1000 Series Watch

980.028N

Now that my wife's collection is growing nicely, I can tell she's fighting the urge to buy watches left right and centre. I found this one on eBay for just £159 yesterday, but with only 34 minutes left to go. I actually showed it to my wife because I expected her to screw up her nose like she usually does with anything two-tone, but to my absolute surprise she looked at it and said, "Well, that's... actually quite nice!". You could have knocked me down with a feather...

Ultimately my wife didn't want to rush into another purchase after already spending £270 on an Alter Ego (she's not quite as profligate as me... yet!) so she passed, but I'm looking out to see if it gets relisted all the same.

It may not be fashionable to admit it, but I kinda like the older black and gold TAGs. You may remember I talked about a black and gold S/EL the other day, and if that had been a full bracelet instead of a leather strap I think I would have been hard pressed to restrain myself...

But there is a degree of 'patina' when you buy these older watches, which you have to be prepared for. The gold on the bezel looks great (as do the hands I notice), but the bracelet and clasp look a little rough. I'm not very well versed in the care and upkeep of gold, so I'm not sure what could be done to restore the pristine look, but given that TAG's 80s watches are notoriously thin on the gold plating, you wouldn't want to be rubbing it too hard I don't think.

When you're collecting watches, it's classic pieces like this that can give you something fresh in the collection without breaking the bank. For us chaps there is the hurdle that watches from the 80s tended to be a good bit smaller back then, but while women's sizes may have increased too, most women wouldn't turn up their nose at a smaller piece the way a lot of men do. Honestly, I wish I could wear 35mm because there would be a lot out there for me, but at 17 Stone and with a 7.3/4" wrist - I really can't.

I'm sure if I look through the catalogues there'll be a man-size(ish) version of this, but you can bet your bottom dollar that if you can find one it won't be available for £169... which is annoying - but for the discerning lady watch collector it really is a buyers market (at least from what I've seen). I wouldn't be surprised if this watch doesn't re-appear on eBay* sometime soon and I wouldn't be surprised if my wife snaps it up either. She's definitely got the bug now...

I think a lot could depend on how well the Alter Ego bracelet goes, if it comes back looking better than she hoped I think that will give her a lot of confidence going forward that she can buy watches pre-owned and get them looking nice again without spending a fortune. We shall see...

*The watch has indeed been relisted at the same selling price.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Womens-TAG-HEUER-1000-Quartz-Watch-28mm-Black-Dial-Date-WR-200M-/253769936185?oid=253752412943

VIDEO: TAG Heuer Monza Calibre 17 Functions and Care by Govberg Watches

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: 2018 Manchester United Special Editions

CAR201M.FT6156

When the Manchester United Special Editions came out last year it's fair to say that I was less than completely blown away. The Formula 1 was okay, but the Carrera was verging on the offensive. Well, no that's not entirely fair, it wasn't the watch so much as that horrendous 'Devil' logo that looks like it was drawn by a two year old. I mean, okay... maybe that's been on their shirts since 1886 or something, but there's no getting away from the fact that it looks awful. I'm sure if Ferrari's 'horse' looked like it was drawn with a yard brush then somewhere down the line someone would have done something about it. But I guess now, as with so many things (good or bad) 'change' is considered sacrilege and so they're stuck with it... and so, indeed, are we.

So the good news is that they've switched to the full Manchester United logo which means the 'badly-drawn-devil' part is now much smaller on the dial. They've also switched from a PVD finish to a steel look and matched this to a red rubber strap. One of the nicest things about the old Man Utd Carrera was the leather strap that eventually found its way onto various incarnations of the Drive Timers and (in blue) on the Red Bull Carrera Heuer 01, so in a way it's a shame to see that go - but I guess they have to ring the changes somehow, especially as you'd imagine a lot of the potential customers for this watch may already own the 2017 version.

As for the price, this 43mm Carrera is currently showing on the TAG Heuer website at £4600 which I think is slightly more than the outgoing model, although that might be because there was a price rise not so long ago.

CAZ101M.FT8024

Love it or hate it, the previous Man Utd Formula 1 was quite a statement, and the first watch to carry the red and black 'Link' rubber strap that now features on the PVD coated quartz Senna models. So it's a bit disappointing to note that the new model seems a bit of a backward step. That perforated strap can be found on a number of entry level Formula 1's and the dial is fairly unremarkable at first glance. Of course, last years F1 already featured the full Man Utd logo so there's no bonus points to be had there - although I guess we should be thankful they didn't decide to switch this one for the dreaded 'Devil' badge. 

So at first glance it's a rather ho-hum outing really, maybe it will look better in the flesh but at the moment I'd say whereas last time out the Formula 1 had the upper hand, this time I'd say the Carrera is the one to go for. Of course the choice is going to be largely determined by price and this one is less than a third of the price of the Carrera at £1250. 

Both watches are 43mm, so there's no disparity there, it's largely down to cost, movement choice and personal taste. I think the Carrera is by far the more interesting, and if that red strap is too much for you, there's always the option of switching it out for a black version. Other than that I think the red highlights look good against the grey dial, although I'm not too sure how good the red lume will be (if indeed it is lume?) and I'm relieved they didn't go completely mad and red lume the minute markers - I think that would have been a step too far.

Overall then, slightly disappointing... but I'm sure the Red Hordes will still make this a sales success story for the brand...